John Knoll to be Honored with Sci-Tech Award from The Academy

ILM’s Chief Creative Officer John Knoll will be honored at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Scientific and Technical Awards Presentation on Feb. 9 at the Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills.

The award is being pretended to John with his brother Thomas Knoll and Mark Hamburg for their work on Adobe Photoshop. The award is one of nine awards being presented on Feb. 9, represented by twenty-seven individual award recipients including Pixar’s Ed Catmull.

Scientific and Engineering Awards (Academy Plaques) will be presented to David Simons, Daniel Wilk, James Acquavella, Michael Natkin and David Cotter for Adobe After Effects; Oscar-winning VFX supervisor John Knoll, Thomas Knoll and Mark Hamburg for Adobe Photoshop; and Pixar’s leader Ed Catmull, Tony DeRose and Jos Stam for their subdivision surfaces science.

“Each year, the Academy forms a diverse committee made up of nearly 60 experts on the technology of filmmaking tasked with examining the tools that artists use to create films,” Doug Roble, chair of the Scientific and Technical Awards Committee, said Wednesday in a statement. “This year, the committee is recognizing nine technologies from around the world. These extraordinary contributions to the science of filmmaking have elevated our art form to incredible new heights.”

James is an active member of the Star Wars collecting community, and is the Brand Director for Jedi News. James is also the host of the Star Wars Collectors Cast, and co-host of RADIO 1138 on the Jedi News Network.